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History of the Southern Kymurian Lands
The Southern Kymurian Lands are a collection of small states on the southern end of the Panguillan Continent. The region is notable for its extremely humid climate, vast bamboo forests, wild jungles, and unexplored interior. Origins The origins of the SKL are obscure. According to legend, a number of local groups (variously given from five to 10) were led to the SKL by a great sorceress and Queen named Bai Han, who drove the Vy people living in the area across the Huyen River. Eventually, the new union of tribal powers, known as the Vin Khans, grew unhappy with Bai Han's rule, and through a ruse, destroyed her power. The various groups then pursued their own courses, loosely bound into a confederation that held councils at Hokasa Court, where laws were passed; at this point, the SKL was commonly referred to as the Vin Kingdoms. At first, the Vin Xsan were the predominant clan, but 56KF another group, the Xi Nam, began to extend their domain, conquering the Vin Xsan and gaining access to the market and trade centre at Xiphron Bay. The entire northern region of the SKL was now unified, but the south remained a loose collection of autonomous kingdoms. Like the other kingdoms, Xi Nam rulers also owned many slaves. They served as officials in the royal palace, where they attended to the needs of the King's wives and supervised the abattoir and meal preparation, among other activities. The slaves also acted as jailers, market judges, and stewards of the King's territories. Additionally, they sometimes served as governors of a province, though this position was usually given to wealthy Chaus (chief of trade and markets). During his first council at Hokasa, King Xi Nam announced that the other kingdoms were permitted autonomy as long as a small tribute was levied to him, and that the states must confederate if the security of one was at threat. Before his death ten years later, he founded the first Imperial Dynasty of Southern Kymuria, the Xi Nam Tai, with the wish that his line continue ruling the empire after his demise. First Kymurian War When Kymuria had finished its first war of unification and King Huw's moderate influence had passed, the Kingdom turned its attention south and began to poster along the Xi Nam Tai border. With war appearing inevitable, the then Xi Nam Tai Emperor, Trí Minh III, ordered a general mobilisation of the Army of Southern Kymuria. However, rather than form a confederacy, he attempted to vassalise or annex many of the southernmost kingdoms, which succeeded, but destroyed much of the loyalty garnered in the past.. Tri Minh's army consisted of around 50,000 men, some of whom were armed with spears and bows; other soldiers carried more modern weapons, including crossbows. According to Kymurian estimates, on the eve of hostilities, the Xi Nams had an army of 30,000–70,000 men. Only about 25 percent of the army had any military training and the men were armed with a motley of homemade weapons of every type and in every condition. The best Xi Nam units were the Emperor's "Vah Tram" (Imperial Guard), who were well-trained and better equipped than the other troops. The Imperial Guard wore a distinctive greenish-khaki uniform which stood out from the brightly coloured cotton cloak worn by most Southern fighters and which proved to be an excellent target. The skills of the Jan, the generals of the Xi Nam armies, were reported to rate from relatively good to incompetent. Fifty foreign mercenaries joined the Xi Nam forces, including Kymurian exiles like Parin Corriger, an official Outmost military mission under Dwarven Captain Viking Tamm, and the Zeor Rebel Feodor Konovalov. In 157KF, Baron-General De Carrinton crossed the Hoxian River and advanced into the SKL from the plains region without a declaration of war. His commanders began asking the population to rebel against Tri Mihn and support the "true Emperor Gian V". Forty-year-old Gian had been deposed many years earlier but was still in custody. At this point in the campaign, the lack of roads represented a serious hindrance for the Kymurians as they crossed into the SKL. On the Kymurian side, roads had been constructed right up to the border. On the XI Nam side, these roads often transitioned into vaguely defined paths.Within a week, the Kymurians had taken Spidertown Outpost, and by the first month, Axarin was also taken. The Emperor had ordered Duke (Jan) Gugsa Xihan, the Commander of the 1st Jungle Levies, to move back 35 miles from the border. Later on, Gugsa surrendered with 1,200 followers at Kymurian held Spidertown; Kymurian propagandists lavishly publicised the surrender but fewer than a tenth of Gugsa's men defected with him. The decisive battle of the war was the Battle of Anxiph Mah, which took place in mountainous country 100 miles south of Spidertown. The Kymurian army comprised four brigades totalling approximately 57,700 men; the Xi Nam army comprised several brigades of regulars and levies numbering between 73,000 and 90,000 men. General De Carrinton planned to surprise the larger Xi Nam force with an early morning attack, expecting his enemy to be asleep. However, the Xi Nam troops had risen early for prayer services and, upon learning of the Kymurian advance, promptly attacked. The Kymurian forces were hit by wave after wave of attacks, until the Emperor released his Guard reserve of 25,000 men, destroying a Kymurian brigade. Another brigade was cut off, and destroyed by a cavalry charge. The last two brigades were destroyed piecemeal. By noon, the Kymurian survivors were in full retreat. While Tri Minh's victory was in a large part due to sheer force of numbers, his troops were well-armed because of his careful preparations. The army only had a feudal system of organisation, but proved capable of properly executing the strategic plan drawn up in Tri Minh's headquarters. Imperial Conquest The next encounter with the Kymurians would be during the Great Eastern War. Having crushed the North and declared himself Emperor of Kymuria, Cyroth began marching vast quantities of troops and artillery south for a vassalisation of the SKL. By this point, the decline of the Xi Nam Dynasty had left the SKL largely to the control of its regional Rice Barons and minor kingdoms, which meant that the county only had a ceremonial King, Ton Xi, who held little personal power. True power was exercised by the Wichan, a court of Nobles who ran a vast, complex and abominably slow bureaucratic system, overseen by its Chief minister, Gian Khan. Gian Khan had been ejected several times on charges of corruption, but no other noble held enough power indivudually to command an army, and so he was a popular candidate, at least in the King's eyes, to lead another victory and restore Dynastic nationalism. Once the Kymurian Empire declared war on the SKL, Gian Khan wrote to the King's government, saying he no longer had aspirations to the Ministry but would eagerly use his military experience to fight off the foreign invasion. The replacement Chief Minister, Gohm Xi-Tin Khan, a minor noble, was desperate enough to accept the offer and allowed Gian Khan to return. Once back in Hokasa at the head of the Royal Guard and local levies, Gian Khan declared himself Chief once again.